Jay Vaglio

Ind. Study Conclusions

jay — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 02:27:07 +0000

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Overview

Proposal
Describe the reason for pursuing this independent study, the projected outcomes, and the target deliverables.

Review and Visualize
Highlight all of the methods found in the course syllabi of the department.
Map-out all of the methods in relationship to one another to locate gaps and redundancies of the methods.

Identify and Recommend
Recommend potential areas in the curriculum to integrate found methods or propose the development of new methods.

Develop a Resource
Design a place that this resource can live and be used as a tool for future discussions in curricular development.

Reflection
Reflect on the semester’s study specifically how the study changed over the course of the semester.

Handout

Here is a link to the PDF:

[button link="http://www.jayvaglio.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Vaglio_IndependentStudy_Handout.pdf" ]First Draft[/button]

Have No Fear!

More to come…
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Developing a Syllabus

jay — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 03:56:01 +0000

Jay Vaglio
CoAT | Workshop Reflection 5/6
Developing a Syllabus – Course Development
February 20th 2011

[button link="http://www.jayvaglio.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Course_Project_Objectives_final.pdf"]Download PDF of Syllabus[/button]

Part One | Describe

Developing a Course Syllabus | Administered by Meredith Davis

D 592 Course Assignment | February 20 2011 | Approximately 10 graduate students

This in-class assignment aimed to integrated the necessary elements of a semester-long course into one syllabus document. The course could be real, fake, or somewhere between however the context must be explained to allow for others reading the documents to relate the expectations of the course to the assignment(s). Course objectives, an example project description, timeline, and evaluation method were also required for this assignment.

This assignment was presented later in the semester which allowed for us to practice what we had previously learned in the writing objectives lesson. Learning how to write learning outcomes in both Pedagogy (D 592) and in one of the CoAT workshops allowed me to apply those skills to this in-class assignment. The assignment mimicked the experience of being presented a limited amount of information about a course, the curriculum, and the context, and trying to develop a course syllabus from that information.

Part Two | Analyze
Developing a course syllabus is a practical application of the skills learned from the course. Learning outcomes were taught in the course and practiced in an assignment earlier in the semester. This assignment, developing a course syllabus, combined the knowledge gained from being critical on learning outcomes and other lessons throughout the semester.

The practice of articulating the intent of the course and project against an appropriate amount of time is something unique that I gained experience in. Building in time for work, project adjustments, and even errors is something that earlier lessons and workshops had not provided as much practice on.

The feedback on the course syllabus was helpful in continuing to be critical. The course dances a fine-line between a technical course and an open-ended exploration-driven design course. The fact we were able to develop the course ourselves, I was able to target the syllabus to be used in the future if I were to propose teaching a course at a University. This syllabus demonstrates not only my experience in writing such documents but also the types of courses I would be interested in teaching in the future.

Connecting this experience to my Teaching Assistant experience is easy because the course is loosely based off of the Web Authorship / Interaction Design course I was a TA for. The course pushed students to represent themselves online by the end of the semester. To get there, the students went through a series of small projects that scaffolded the skills needed to develop their own website using a Content Management System (e.g. WordPress). The course was successful at getting students represented online while teaching them about the current web conventions and techniques.

When I teach in the future, I plan on taking these skills gained from this experience in developing a course syllabus. The PDF could even be used to present to future colleagues on the faculty to demonstrate my experience writing such documents. Because of this, I believe this exercise was beneficial because of its ability to tie in multiple disconnected learned techniques or strategies and brought them all together into one document / assignment.

The class assignment also reminded me the benefit of peer review. Before we turned in our final drafts, we viewed a few other classmates syllabus in small groups. The discussions that followed were critical and pulled from various teaching experiences and contexts which enhanced my own awareness for the types of students, the course credit hours / meeting times, and the curricular expectation of students that all play important factors when developing course syllabi. Without that type of information, these documents can be extremely inefficient and off-target from the needs of the course being taught.

Motivating Adolescents

jay — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 04:29:23 +0000

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Justification

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Obesity Epidemic

Coaching lifestyle
Many initiatives and writings focus on the dietary side of healthy lifestyles when discussing the topic of overweight and obesity. In the context of adolescent health, these programs, plans, etc. are necessary attempts at teaching healthy choices and behaviors that revolve around food. Due to this focus, I believe there is an opportunity to explore how physical activity can be designed to assist in promoting healthy lifestyles for adolescents. Integrating mechanics from games (video games and sports specifically), I believe adolescents can be motivated in engaging with physical activity to help maintain healthy lifestyles. Lifestyle choices and behaviors will transform into a way of life to ensure this disconcerting trend does not continue..

Maintaining physical activity over time
To attain and more importantly maintain this way of life, motivation is at the core. Exploring motivation and the research that supports frameworks of motivation, I believe coaching adolescents in physical activity will help sustain the healthy behavior change over time. My hope is to explore good coaching practices to uncover a model of coaching that can be reinterpreted for a mobile device.

Why a mobile device
Mobile devices have become a ubiquitous technology for many—calling, texting, and now Internet access. As these devices have become prevalent, adolescents have been equipped with these capabilities as well. They are being raised with this technology with them all the time as a way to communicate with parents, siblings, and friends. Inevitably, socializing with friends and leisure activities, such as games, have become integrated into the medium as well, demonstrating the vast potential these devices have for further integration and exploration.

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Constraints

Limitations
Adolescent boys, age 13 years old
Mobile Devices – text, image (potentially web capable)
Progress an adolescent from amotive to a self-determined(intrinsic) state of motivation
A coaching model is comprised (partially) of the respective elements listed in my sub questions
Individuals willing to participate in activity, possibly forced by their parent
Scaling competition through gaming mechanics
Integration into schooling to reach potential audience
Not accounting for both genders interacting with one another, specifically boys
Not addressing food choices or selection
Not accounting for attaining general resources (gym, shoes, etc).

Assumptions
Motivating amotive adolescents is possible
Incentives or rewards can help motivate adolescents
Support and reliance is present in teammates / coaching relationship
Coaching can encourage behavior change
Mobile phones will be used and present with the audience
There is a desire from parents and schools to assist obese students
Boys are safe to compete / participate as well as supervised
Physically capable of physical activity; medically approved for activity
Children will start in the program facilitated by guardians

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Researchable Question

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Main Question

How can a design service apply/reflect/utilize the learning cycle for coaching be integrated into the support community of amotive, overweight adolescents in a way that prevents obesity by intrinsically motivating them to maintain physical activity?

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Secondary Questions

How can visualizing the optimal level of challenge of participants assist ‘coaches’ in adjusting the desired outcomes for physical activities?

How can tracking progress of an adolescent’s participation in physical activities enrich rewards and incentives to engage adolescents in continued participation?

In what ways can feedback be visualized for adolescents to help sustain participation in long-term physical activity?

In what ways can virtual prompts be integrated into an adolescent’s daily routine to embody a teammate’s reliance and support?
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Investigations

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Comparative Analysis

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Principle, Process, Method

jay — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 05:28:54 +0000

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Design for a Culture of Sharing

Theorizing

Students will work individually to generate a potential design principle, design process, and design research method to support the design of sharing platforms, as proposed in the futurecasts. The principle, process, and method will be described in graphic form and presented as 11″ x 17″ static pages (PDF).

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Learning Outcomes

Propose at least one principle that would guide the design of systems for sharing, given the futurecasts.
Diagram a future design process (applicable ten years into the future) that would support the design of systems for sharing, given the futurecasts.
Propose one research method and sketch the research instrument that would inform the design of systems for sharing, given the futurecasts.
Describe the assumptions of and justifications for the proposed design principles, process, and method.

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Deliverables

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Poster Series Presentation

Open publication

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Reflection

My concept of an action-prototyping tool is to empower the designer to understand how end-users actually interact with their designs in varying contexts of use. As designs are seamlessly integrated into our daily lives, such as mobile devices, designers need to account for an ever-complex user experience.

This investigation allowed me the opportunity to project a future need and develop a way to address this theoretical need. This project encouraged me to imagine, project, and design a way to address a future need. The difficulty to grapple with the future so far in advance (in this case 10 years) I feel will aid in my aspirations for innovation. Being able to foresee future trends and conceptualize a systemic approach to addressing a projected opportunity is at the heart of innovation itself—future thinking.

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Design Collaborative 2012

jay — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 23:08:41 +0000

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The Initiative

The Design Collaborative is an initiative started in 2011 and took place in the Graphic Design Senior Capstone course, taught by Professor Scotford. The initiative is part of an effort by graduate students (with aspirations of teaching design in their future) to interact with undergraduates in ways that would broaden their teaching experiences.
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Grad—Undergrad Collaboration

During the 2011 capstone course, several design challenges (charettes) were offered to students and one of them was involved the Design Collaborative. In 2012, the Design Collaborative made an appearance in the week-long charette with force (6 graduate students, 20 undergraduates). In the future, the Design Collaborative has potential to establish new pedagogically-rich experiences between graduate and undergraduate students in Graphic Design, as well as other design majors in the College of Design.
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One-Week Charette

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Graduates

Design a lesson plan for a week-long charette that meets the following:

Students document their design process (setting, time of day, materials used) and project deliverables in a way that can be displayed in their online portfolios
(e.g. http://goo.gl/BMvbE)
Students are able to finish the design project your team develops, that is unrelated to their capstone project, in one-week’s time (minimum of 2 meetings with grad students + 2 studio periods on Tuesday and Thursday)
(e.g. http://goo.gl/EHmEy)

Facilitate the ideation, design, and development (in a minimum of 2 meetings) of a tangible deliverable that students must document/provide to you at the end of the one week.

PDF of Charette Brief — For Graduate students

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Undergraduates

Goals
Change focus (briefly) from capstone
Manage multiple projects and deadlines
Design within tight deadlines/high constraints
Work in a team of classmates minimum of one teammate
Develop a portfolio piece for online portfolio
Document design process for online portfolio

Deliverables
Document process and artifact(s) for online portfolio
Develop a series of visual investigations pertinent to the challenge chosen
Reflect on the charette experience on the course website with a short paragraph
Include a link to your own site where the charette is documented

PDF Charette Brief — For students

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The Challenges

Branding the Future of Transportation in the Triangle Area
(Kohler & Whitcomb) [Link to Brief]
Rethinking the Post Office Experience Through Technology & Service Design
(Carbaugh, Dillard, & Ortega) [Link to Brief]
Create & upkeep a web/mobile presence that captures “daily dose of design…” (ask Jay for more details) Example 2,Example 2
Explore ways of integrating graphics in a space in Raleigh that could influence
positive change in behaviors of the people that interact with it
(ask Jay for more details) Example 1
Develop the platform for a new online community that looks to aid a targeted
population, initiative, etc. (ask Jay for more details) Example 1 | Example 2
Develop a one week design—no arts/crafts—challenge with another classmate (approval required) Example 1

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The Experience

Deliverables

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4 | Nature Park Educational Signage
5 |

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Reflection

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Graduates

I believe they enjoyed learning new brainstorming methods, and that it helped them to “loosen up” in their design process and not overthink any one idea too early in the week. The short deadline also forced them to be more decisive, so when it came time to make decisions about visual form and language, they knew that they couldn’t put it off.

It is my hope that they took away a new sense of freedom in the design process—that good work can come out of short deadlines, that you can have fun and be silly when ideating, that your process can change based on the constraints of the project, and that as a designer you have the power and the control to make up new methods and techniques that work with your constraints.

The Design Collaborative was a great opportunity for me to practice teaching in a fairly low-risk environment—I had a great teaching partner, the charette was only a week long, and the seniors are very self-sufficient, organized, and reliable. All these factors made it an ideal situation for me to help plan and execute the charette, which was my first real teaching experience. Additionally, this was the perfect opportunity to practice writing and teaching to specific learning outcomes, which we have recently been discussing in the Pedagogy class. It was an invaluable experience for me and I will recommend that other grad students carry on the tradition in the future.

The tight deadline is something that they will have to become much more comfortable with as they move into the professional world, and having a few methods that will help them be creative under pressure will be invaluable to them in their future careers.

I think that just leaving it up to the seniors and the grad students to make of it what they will and not over-structuring the week is nice.

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Undergraduates

Once we came to the understanding that we could share the burden of creation, we were able to work both separately and together to create pieces and parts of a product that we then assembled as a team.

Being put to a challenge pushes me to get creative and move through my process with more determination. This challenge has shown me that I might need to set up more challenges for myself in my own capstone project in order to overcome some road blocks I have hit. Moving forward, this project has improved my skills in collaborative working environments that I will take with me into each new design experience.

When there are others involved, it’s no longer just you and your responsibilities, you have to consider and respect what everyone else wants to get out of the project as well. I was able to stay motivated, focused, and productive during this project for that reason. We were all helping and supporting each other.

We’ve worked in groups a lot up to this point in our schooling, and I think this was the most successful because of the time constraint. We weren’t allowed time to be flakey or get into stupid arguments or not follow through with our end of the deal.

It was interesting to work in this format because it was basically taking our semester and fast forwarding into a one week challenge.

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2011 Design Collaborative

The beginning of the Design Collaborative started with just two graduate students, Rachael Huston and myself. To view what we developed as group leaders view the following link:
Senior Capstone one-week charette 2011

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Mapping Methods

jay — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 04:16:05 +0000

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Intent

I began by listing the methods currently used in the Graphic Design curriculum and then compared it to a generalized design process. As I began to refine, I tried to develop a clear chart showing not only when the methods are integrated into the design process, but what students were getting from the methods.

After a discussion with Andrew Whitcomb (fellow MGD classmate who is working with a mega-list of methods for his thesis), the idea to integrate a guiding framework into my analysis came about. The concept of working with a framework, in this case Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, is that the structure will be a constraint. I chose Bloom’s Taxonomy because it is commonly used in measuring student competencies — what student’s are getting from the methods.

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Outcomes

You can view the working document using [button link="http://www.jayvaglio.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/Mapping_DesignProcess-Methods1.pdf"]PDF[/button]

Version 2 can be found here:
[button link="http://www.jayvaglio.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/Mapping_DesignProcess-Methods-31.pdf"]PDF[/button]

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Brainstorming Design for Health

jay — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 05:01:23 +0000

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About the Workshop

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Context

Brainstorming Design for Health: Helping Patients Utilize Patient Generated Information on the Web
Seattle, Washington
40 workshop participants / 630 conference attendees

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Topic Details

I am in a group that is brainstorming resolutions, solutions, opportunities, challenges, etc. on the the topic of, “Working with “lay” concepts and language and their alignment with complex medical issues”.

Here is a link with the full listing of collaborators and outline for the workshop:
Link to Details
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Workshop Experience

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Outcomes

Define of patient-generated information on the Web
Gain insights from Paul Wick’s experience via a Skype presentation and discussion about patientslikeme.com
Develop a scenario describing the problem(s) that the group wants to address
End-of-Day | (1) A concrete design artifact–A use case scenario that illustrates the use of the artifact; (2) Specific challenges around the group’s topic

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Reflection

The workshop was a great opportunity to connect with others interested in designing for health. The various stakeholders in the workshop made the difference in my experience. Working alongside a doctor, designers, health researchers, etc. allowed our brainstorming to be holistic in our short window of ideation. The representation of doctor and patient in the same group allowed for empathy and understanding to be balanced in perspective. The group was full of highly qualified, enthusiastic individuals—it was an honor to be a part of the collaborative experience.

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Refine, Compare, Iterate

jay — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 16:55:13 +0000

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Process Methods

Map/Diagramming

Concept mapping
Knowledge map
Context mapping
Thought Map Exercise
Map/diagram of total system
Experience mapping
Interaction mapping
Experience schema
Activity diagrams
System touchpoints

Flow Diagrams

Service and interactive flow diagrams
Task flows
Flow chart
Click stream
User paths
Sitemaps
[representation of time-based or spatial sequencing]

Context-Assessment

Brand audits
Brand Positioning
Competitive Analysis
Repositioning exercises

User analysis
User experience [digital & physical]
User-assessment methods
User experience audit
User readiness analysis
User description
Profile demographics
Personas
First-person experience

Observation
Survey
Site survey
Subject studies
Documentation {assuming photography}
Interviews
Briefs

Ideation

Brainstorming
2D, 3D, 4D ideational sketching
Annotated panoramas/tableaus
Speed date

Other

Mood boards
Strategy and architecture
Priority List
Exhibition design

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Prototyping

Mocking-Real Use

Proxy prototypes
Propositional prototype
A basic time-based interactive visualization
Service prototyping {no description}
Interface prototype
Interactive prototype
Typeface applied to network TV broadcast station
Viral video
Responsive prototype

Demonstration

Storyboards
Spatial sequencing
Narrative
Scenarios
Time representations
Activity Scenarios
Animation [or scenario]
Wireframing
Static-click through
Animation scenarios
Animation demo
Diary or Journal
Instructions or a Recipe
language and image narratives
Exchange scenarios
Activity scenarios
Wireframing
Video sketching

Modeling

Physical modeling
3D rapid prototyping
Paper prototypes
[linear paper prototypes ordering events/objects]
Modeling interaction
Organizing information

Action/Applied

Viable prototypes
Fully prototype
Fully-functional prototype

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Analysis

Reflection

Process books
Visual essays
Authored journals

Testing

Potential users can test it {end-user testing}

Framing/Explanation

Rules [sets threshold conditions that must be met and that define parameters for the experience]
Project briefs
Project Definition

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Potential

Material Integration

focus on the integration and frequent use of diverse and new materials, tools, and technologies.

Tools

Grid systems
Quadrant diagram

Concepts

Information organization
User guidance/feedback
Apply core methodologies and vocabulary relevant to Mobile interaction

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Growing up Digital

jay — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 02:07:52 +0000

Growing up Digital: The Rise of the Net Generation by Don Tapscott is a book that describes how the generation that grew up with digital technology integrated into their lives are unique and may affect our society as a whole. I am reading this book to assist in understanding my audience, 13 year old boys. The book, written in 1998, analyzes how the future (which is currently ‘in-play’) of technology savvy children will transform our society in various facets. Though this book focuses on how the generation will be technology capable, I envision using it as a baseline to compare other readings and gathered insights about adolescents, from the surveys given to the exercise program directors at Active Teens and Healthy Hawks.

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The Louder Echo | Chapter One

This shift from broadcast to interactie is the cornerstone of the N-Generation. They want to be users—not just viewers or listeners. p.4

What do kids do with computers?
N-Geners use if for:

Entertainment

Learning

Communicating

Shopping

Manage personal finances, fact check, organize protests, etc.

p.5

By necessity, cyberspace has become an N-gen playground and hangout. It is a place where they play and have fun. It is a place where kids can be kids. p.8

They cannot be supervised in the traditional sense. Rather they must be given the environment and tools to create and succeed. p.10

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Chapter Four | The Culture of Interaction

10 Themes of N-Gen Culture

Fierce Independence

Emotional and Intellectual Openness

Inclusion

Free Expression and Strong Views

Preoccupation with Maturity

Investigation

Immediacy

Sensitivity to Corporate Interest

Authentication and Trust

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Jay Vaglio

Ind. Study Conclusions

Overview

Handout

Have No Fear!

Developing a Syllabus

Motivating Adolescents

Justification

Obesity Epidemic

Constraints

Researchable Question

Main Question

Secondary Questions

Investigations

Comparative Analysis

Mapping the Current System

Visualizing Physical Activity

Visualizing Progress

Contextualizing Feedback

Social Interaction

Presentations

End-of First Semester

Oral Exams

More to-come as I continue my investigation…

Principle, Process, Method

Design for a Culture of Sharing

Theorizing

Learning Outcomes

Deliverables

Poster Series Presentation

Reflection

Design Collaborative 2012

The Initiative

Grad—Undergrad Collaboration

One-Week Charette

Graduates

Undergraduates

The Challenges

The Experience

Deliverables

Reflection

Graduates

Undergraduates

2011 Design Collaborative

Mapping Methods

Intent

Outcomes

Brainstorming Design for Health

About the Workshop

Context

Topic Details

Workshop Experience

Outcomes

Reflection

Refine, Compare, Iterate

Process Methods

Recommended

Prototyping

Recommended

Analysis

Recommended

Potential

Recommended

Growing up Digital

The Louder Echo | Chapter One

Chapter Four | The Culture of Interaction